The REI in Santa Ana (off the 5/ 55 freeways & McFadden) is having a big sale, and also parked there was Piaggio and Tropical Shave Ice. It was also such a nice day that Anna and I had to stop by for lunch.
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| The Tres Amigos burrito Shrimp, pulled pork and steak with rice, cheese, and other goodies. |
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| Pulled pork sliders w/ chimichurri |
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| Rick serving up my melona-vanilla shave ice |
THANK YOU to Crepes Bonaparte for coming to Santa Ana to help with the United Way Kick Off rally. Even though it was pouring rain, the people came out for the food. It wasn’t a spectacular turnout, but considering the circumstances, I think we did pretty well!
THANK YOU, THANK YOU!
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| Rain or Shine, Crepes Bonapare serves up the people! |
A new gourmet truck launched and I caught up with Short Stop BBQ in Santa Ana’s Artist Village. The truck has not been wrapped yet, so while I was waiting in the cold rain, a kept seeing a bland white truck go up and down Sycamore and 3rd street.
Finally I flagged the truck down and asked (Andrew) “Are you the Barbecue truck”? It was!
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| Tri Tip Slider with bleu cheese slaw |
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| BBQ Chicken slider |
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| Pulled Pork Slider with BBQ Vinaigrette slaw, pickled red onions |
Its a bit wet out today, and there’s a Health Fair going on down the street from my office. Crepes Bonaparte has a monthly stop at my office the first Tuesday of each month, and was supposed to park in front of my work.
With the Health Fair, and the lack of foot traffic, they decided to try 3rd and Sycamore with Dos Chinos. As much as I like seeing them in front of my office, the location on 3rd seem to be better.
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| Tomato pesto crepe |
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| Nothing stops a foodie from getting food… not even the rain! |
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| Shrimp tacos from Dos Chinos |
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| Filet Mignon tacos from Dos Chinos |
The Oh For Sweets Sake truck and Dos Chinos were going to be in DT Santa Ana. They were trying for their “usual” spot on 3rd and Sycamore, but the parking lot attendant decided to be a jerk and charge them $30 to park. When they hesitated, the parking attendant hiked it to $100.
I stood there watching the 2 poor trucks circle and circle the downtown area, looking for a spot. It was the first Saturday of the month, and Downtown Santa Ana was crowded with people coming in for “Santa Ana Art Walk”
Dos Chinos took off down Main Street, and Oh For Sweets Sake found a spot on Broadway and 3rd, in front of Libreria Martinez, a latin bookstore.
At first the bookstore frowned upon the OFSS truck parked in front of their store, saying the truck would block their store. Little did we know it was a grand opening, and they feared their loyal customers would not find the new location.
Well, a win-win compromise solution came about. OFSS assured Mr. Martinez that the truck will “draw” customers because of twitter and facebook. In addition if the customers go to the bookstore and buy something, they can show OFSS their receipt and get $1 off their savory order. That way, truck traffic would bring customers into the bookstore, and bookstore customers can get a discount for buying a book… everyone wins!
Thank you to Mr. Martinez and his family for allowing OFSS share the evening, and I hope your Grand Opening Night was a success! Muchas Gracias por todo!
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| Libreria Martinez bookstore is located on 216 N, Broadway in Santa Ana Next door to Subway Sandwich, on the corner of 3rd and Broadway |
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| OFSS Soul Food Saturday: Mac n Cheese w. corn bread |
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| OFSS Soul Food Saturday Fried Chicken |
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| And you always save room for a OFSS Cupcake! |
In the last 48 hours, there’s been a big confusion (not to mention worry) about the future of OC Din-Din a Go Go. This made me want to savor a gourmet truck in case there was no chance of finding something tomorrow. After work, we made our way to Santa Ana to have dinner with Piaggio on Wheels and Dos Chinos.
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| Pork Bellies with a mango chile sauce over rice |
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| Steak pichanta with zucchini over rice |
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| Tofu and zucchini over rice |
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| Oh For Sweets Sake debut the Saturday Soul Food menu |
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| Karen ordered the Mac n Cheese Came with corn bread muffin & fruit |
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| 2 pc of fried chicken, mac & cheese corn bread muffin & fruit |
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| The OFSS “Twinkie” filled with raspberry instead of cream |
We also tried some other trucks…
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| Komodo Truck (photo courtesy of Orangcountygal) |
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| Pork Meatballs topped with Spanish Red Bell Pepper Sauce (photo courtsy of orangecountygal) |
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Uncle Lau’s Island BBQ
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| Uncle Lau’s bbq brisket |
I was thinking about dinner when I received a “direct message” tweet from Oh For Sweets Sake, telling me that they made me a special bundt cake. They were going to be in downtown Santa Ana on 3rd & Sycamore, about 3 blocks from my work. I also found out that Dos Chinos was (still) there, as well as Calbi BBQ and SeaBirds.
Those trucks didn’t tempt me but when Piaggio on Wheels posted THEY were going to be there, I decided dinner with Piaggio…
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| Grilled tilapia and zuchinni over chimichurri rice |
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| Grilled skirt steak w/ zucchini over chimichurri rice |
… and dessert with Oh for Sweets Sake!
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| Something for every sweet tooth… |
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| my specially made 7-up bundt cake Light, lemony cake sans frosting |
It seems in the foodie truck world, our choices are feast or fail. Last night few trucks were on the road (well, it was Monday!) and today there were a wide variety to pick from. Barcelona on the go was off Main & Jamboree, Piaggio was a bit further south in Irvine, but Dos Chinos and CalbiBBQ were in Santa Ana.
I tried to send a text message to place my favorite order: pork bellies over rice, and texted that I would be there a little after 12:00. Well, it is now 1 pm and I just got back. I know the food it made to order, but somehow the boys at DC needs to step up their game. (shhh! Don’t tell them I said that, as I’ll continue to support them). I went with a coworker who was a DC newbie, and she ordered the pork bellies and the Hollywood Taco: a thai curry chicken with a tamarind sour cream sauce.
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| My pork bellies with mango salsa over rice. This time the pork belly was sliced, not chopped up. |
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| The Hollywood Taco |
The Crepes Bonaparte truck will be stopping near my work on the 1st Tuesday of each month. A lot of the people from work took the day after Labor Day off, so there were not many people today. The last time they came it was scalding hot outside, so many people stayed in. Geesh! I hope more people will start coming to the 900 Broadway location… I’d hate for them to stop coming due to a lack of business 😦
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| Banana, Strawberry and Nutella crepe |
looking for food trucks 